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Uber may “very soon” launch its self-driving car fleet in SF

According to a CNET report, a fleet of Uber-branded self-driving vehicles have been spotted in a warehouse in San Francisco. The discovery implies that the ride-hailing service is apparently getting set to launch its self-driving car fleet for San Francisco customers.

The indications of Uber’s imminent launch of a self-driving car fleet in San Francisco marks the expansion of the company’s self-driving pilot in Pittsburgh --- the only US city in which Uber currently offers its self-driving cars after launching a small fleet in September this year.

In San Francisco, the Uber-branded self-driving cars – which are Volvo SUVs and Ford sedans – have been discovered by CNET in a very commonplace parking garage on a nondescript street in the city’s downtown. Though the cars look like regular dark-gray Volvo SUVs and white Ford sedans, they are equipped with self-driving sensors and camera hardware.

The roofs of the vehicles are decked out with rectangular sci-fi contraptions; with the Uber logo is inscribed across their doors.

Meanwhile, though Uber has not yet officially announced when it is launching its self-driving car fleet in San Francisco, an unidentified person familiar with the launch has told CNET that Uber passengers in the city will be able to dial up one of the company’s futuristic self-driving cars "very soon."